Full text of Hu's speech at welcome luncheon by U.S. friendly organizations

WASHINGTON, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Hu Jintao addressed a welcome luncheon Thursday hosted by friendly organizations in the United States. The following is the full text of his speech:

Building a China-U.S. Cooperative Partnership Based on Mutual Respect and Mutual Benefit

Ladies and gentlemen,

Dear friends,

I wish to begin by thanking the U.S.-China Business Council, the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and other friendly organizations for hosting this welcoming luncheon. I am delighted to have this opportunity to meet friends, old and new, to renew friendship and plan for the future. I would like to extend cordial greetings and best wishes to you and to people from various sectors of the United States who have long cared for and supported the growth of China-U.S. relations.

On this day 74 years ago, President Franklin Roosevelt made his inaugural speech "The Road of Enduring Progress." He called on the American people who were coming out of the depression to unite as one and redouble their efforts to forge ahead along the road of enduring progress. Today, the turbulence caused by the international financial crisis is receding and the world economy is returning to growth. Yet there still exist many uncertainties and destabilizing factors, making the world economic recovery a tortuous process. All countries in the world, including China and the United States, want to fully emerge from the crisis as soon as possible and achieve a full recovery of the world economy. In the face of the complex and fluid international situation and various risks and challenges, the people of our two countries should step up cooperation and work with people across the world to share opportunities, meet challenges and build a better future for mankind.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Thirty-two years ago, Mr. Deng Xiaoping, chief architect of China's reform and opening-up, paid a historic visit to the United States. He said during the visit that the Pacific Ocean should no longer be an obstacle that sets us apart. Rather, it should be a bond that links us together. History has proved the correctness of this important statement.

In the first decade of this century, China and the United States worked together and made steady progress in building a positive, cooperative and comprehensive relationship for the 21st century. China-U.S. relations have reached unprecedented breadth and depth. Given the ever changing circumstances in the world and in our respective countries, what should we do to take a sound and steady China-U.S. relationship into the new decade?

To answer this question, one must, first and foremost, identify the basis for the development of China-U.S. relations. It is fair to say our two countries have never enjoyed such broad common interests and shouldered such important common responsibilities as we do today.

-- Both China and the United States are committed to upholding world peace and stability and reforming the international system. China is the largest developing country while the United States the largest developed one. The steady growth of our relations is, in itself, a major contribution to world peace and stability. Our two countries have engaged in coordination and cooperation on a range of regional hotspot issues and maintained close communication and coordination in both the traditional and non-traditional security fields. Together, we pushed for major progress in the international efforts on climate change and non-proliferation, and facilitated positive outcomes at the G20 summits and other meetings. We have joined the rest of the international community in a common effort to safeguard overall stability in the international order and advance the reform and development of the international system.

-- Both China and the United States are committed to the development and prosperity of the Asia-Pacific region. The Asia-Pacific region is where China and the United States have the most overlapping interests. Cooperation between our two countries in the region is crucial to the regional situation and the growth of our bilateral relations. China and the United States have maintained close communication and coordination on regional hotspot issues such as the Korean nuclear issue, Afghanistan and South Asia and played a constructive role in promoting peace, development, good-neighborliness, mutual trust and mutually beneficial cooperation in the region.

-- Both China and the United States are committed to stronger bilateral cooperation in all fields to the benefit of the two peoples. The United States is China's second largest export market and main source of investment. China is the United States' third largest export market and also the fastest growing one. Preliminary statistics show that, over the past 10 years, quality yet inexpensive Chinese products have saved American consumers over 600 billion U.S. dollars. For many American companies, their businesses in China have become the biggest source of profits in their global operations. Even in 2008 and 2009 when the international financial crisis was most severe, over 70 percent of American companies in China remained profitable. Today, some 3 million tourists travel between the two countries every year. The friendly exchanges between the Chinese and American people have contributed not only to their own cultural progress, but also to the exchanges and mutual learning between the Eastern and the Western civilizations. And they have given a strong boost to the overall progress of human civilization.

Looking ahead, we are fully confident about the prospects of China-U.S. relations. Here I would like to propose that we take the following steps to advance the sound and steady growth of our relations.

First, bear in mind the overall interests, take a long-term perspective and make active efforts to advance China-U.S. cooperative partnership. The China-U.S. relationship is not one in which one side's gain means the other side's loss. Rather, it should be a relationship in which the two sides respect each other and endeavor to deepen strategic mutual trust. It should be a relationship that highlights common interests and stronger cooperation in all fields. The two sides should view and handle the bilateral relations from a global perspective and in keeping with the trend of the times. We should keep our relations on the path of equality, mutual respect, mutual trust, mutual benefit and common development. And to do that, we should increase high-level exchanges, deepen and expand communication at all levels, better appreciate each other's strategic intentions and development paths, and further increase mutual trust, dispel misgivings and build consensus.

Second, seize opportunities and take innovative steps to build a new pattern of mutually beneficial economic cooperation. Both China and the United States are advancing economic restructuring, increasing inputs in environmental protection, new energy and technological innovation, and promoting the development of health, education and other social programs. All this presents new opportunities for us to foster new areas of economic cooperation. China wants to work with the United States to forge a framework of broader and stronger economic cooperation. We can carry out fiscal, financial, and business cooperation on a larger scale, expand exchanges and cooperation in energy, the environment, agriculture, health and other fields, and broaden cooperation in new areas such as aviation and space, infrastructure and smart power grids. In this way, we will make our business ties even stronger and create more jobs and wealth for our people.

Third, intensify communication and consultation and deepen coordination and cooperation in addressing global challenges and international and regional hotspot issues. China and the United States should pursue global cooperation as partners to fulfill common responsibilities and meet common challenges. We should enhance consultation and coordination on global issues such as the Doha Round negotiations, climate change, energy and resources security, food security and public health security through bilateral and multilateral channels, maintain dialogue and exchanges on regional security, regional cooperation and hotspot issues, and work together for a more equitable, just, inclusive and better-managed international system. We should stay committed to promoting peace, stability and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region, engage in open and inclusive regional cooperation, and turn the Asia Pacific into an important region where China and the United States work closely with each other on the basis of mutual respect.

Fourth, deepen friendship, be forward-looking, and vigorously promote friendly exchanges between various sectors of our two countries. The development of China-U.S. relations, in the final analysis, hinges on the broad support and active involvement of people from all walks of life in the two countries. We should draw up a good plan for our exchanges and cooperation in culture, education, science and technology and other fields, and encourage more dialogue and exchanges between the legislatures, local authorities, business communities, academic institutions, media organizations and other sectors so that more and more people will become supporters of stronger China-U.S. relations and get actively involved in this worthy cause. We need to put in extra efforts to boost exchanges between our young people and carry out diverse forms of youth exchange to ensure that the younger generation will carry forward China-U.S. friendship.

Fifth, treat each other with respect and as equals, and handle major, sensitive issues in a proper manner. A review of the history of our relations tells us that China-U.S. relations will enjoy smooth and steady growth when the two countries handle well issues involving each other's major interests. Otherwise, our relations will suffer constant trouble or even tension. Taiwan and Tibet-related issues concern China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, and they represents China's core interests. They touch upon the national sentiments of the 1.3 billion Chinese. We hope that the U.S. side will honor its commitments and work with us to preserve the hard-won progress of our relations.

China and the United States are different in history, culture, social system and development level. It is thus only normal that we have some disagreements and frictions. We should view and handle bilateral relations from a strategic and long-term perspective and with a sense of responsibility to history and to the future. We should prevent our relations from being affected or held back by any individual incident at any particular time. We should increase mutual trust, remove obstacles and work together to build a China-U.S. cooperative partnership based on mutual respect and mutual benefit.

Ladies and gentlemen, the first decade of the 21st century has just passed. It is a decade when China made remarkable achievements in its reform and development endeavor and its relations with the rest of the world notably strengthened. The Chinese economy grew at an average annual rate of around 11 percent. And the Chinese people's livelihood markedly improved. During these 10 years, China imported 687 billion U.S. dollars worth of goods on average every year and created more than 14 million jobs in the relevant countries and regions. China joined the international community in an active effort to counter the international financial crisis, advance the reform of the international economic system, and promote the peaceful settlement of international disputes and hotspot issues. China took an active part in the international cooperation in addressing global issues and worked with countries around the world to safeguard world peace and promote common development.

Despite the remarkable achievements in China's development, we are keenly aware that China is still the largest developing country in the world. We still have a long way to go before we can achieve our national development goals. Development holds the key to resolve all problems in China, and we must pursue scientific development that puts people first and emphasizes comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable development. We need to adopt a more holistic approach to development and attach greater importance to ensuring and improving people's well-being and promoting social equity and justice. China has set out the guiding principles, strategic objectives and major tasks for economic and social development in the coming five years. We will continue to deepen reform and opening-up, advance economic, political, cultural and social restructuring in an all-round way, and improve the socialist market economy. We will develop socialist democracy and build a socialist country under the rule of law. We will work for vigorous cultural development and prosperity, enhance social harmony and improve our open economy in all respects. Through these efforts, we will make continuous progress in our endeavor to build a prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced and harmonious modern socialist country.

We will stick to the basic state policy of opening to the outside world and follow a win-win strategy of opening-up. We will continue to advance China's interests in the broader context of the common interests of the international community, and expand and deepen the converging interests with others. We welcome the participation of other countries in China's development to share our development opportunities. And we will explore new areas and space for opening-up and contribute to the common development of the region and the world through our development.

We will remain committed to the path of peaceful development, continue to strive for a peaceful international environment to develop ourselves, and uphold and promote world peace through our own development. China stands for peaceful settlement of international disputes and hotspot issues, and we follow a national defense policy that is defensive in nature. We do not engage in an arms race or pose a military threat to any country. China will never seek hegemony or pursue an expansionist policy.

Ladies and gentlemen, to advance the sustained, sound and steady development of China-U.S. relations serves the fundamental interests of our two peoples. It is also conducive to world peace and development. Working together hand in hand, we will build a China-U.S. cooperative partnership based on mutual respect and mutual benefit and deliver greater benefits to the people of our two countries and the world over.